The Hunters
by TheNewIdea
Summary: Aela and the Dragonborn are on a hunting expedition searching for food when Skyrim freezes over completely, killing the crops and making farming impossible. As they rest, two figures are watching them, silently waiting to make their move as they too hunt for their survival.


The Hunters

The old cabin whispered. Made from wood of an age long passed, the floorboards spoke of times when men and children would run across them carrying animals either for the house or from the hunt while the women swept them, keeping them clean and presentable. The walls, made from the same wood, remembered the long nights by the fire that the family had in the winter months, how peaceful and quiet everything was. The ceiling laughed as it looked down on nights of passion between lovers, seeing two people intertwined that it thought that people were for a moment at least, like roots of trees.

The trees around the cabin danced with the wind, creating harmonies and with the harmonies symphonies were performed. The dance rose and fell in intensity, moving with all the emotion of the earth, if earth had such emotions to display.

In front of the cabin was a road, beyond the road on the other side was a small wooded area and beyond that was a mountain range. In this mountain range was cave that was home to a pair of wolves. Ferocious animals with only three things on the brain-food, shelter and continuing the population. The wolves, one with fur as grey as the storm clouds and the other white as the snow on the ground, carefully began pacing back and forth in front of the cave. They were waiting, they had been for hours and they would continue to wait until the proper time.

The grey wolf, the female, whose name was Kayla, sniffed the air occasionally out of anticipation, hunger had been suppressed for days, it was time to act, time to fill her empty stomach. One look from Stenrig, the white wolf and the male, told her otherwise.

Stenrig went a little farther than Kayla, going so far as the tree line just before the road that led into Falkreath, he was an easy target, one because he was close to the road and two due to his fur which glistened at times as it reflected off the snow. Stenrig looked right down the road and then left, neither way seemed favorable. He retreated back to the cave and waited, taking a position opposite Kayla.

"There's blood on the wind tonight, good night for a hunt" a voice said through the trees causing Stenrig and Kayla to stir, lifting their heads and barring their teeth in anticipation.

"Yes" a second voice answered, "But I do not think it is ours to be had. It seems...wrong somehow."

Stenrig and Kayla crept to the tree line; the voices were coming from the cabin across the road. The first was a female, if one were to look inside the cabin they would see that she was wearing the armor of the old heroes with war paint that spoke of times long past. The second voice belonged to a male; he was wearing the standard armor of the day. It was made of iron. His helmet had the stereotypical Viking style horns, making it easy if one wanted to, to grab his helmet and either pull it off of him or simply drag the head down and go for a killing blow.

"Will you quit your worrying Ivan?" she said, laughing a bit as she did so, "What's the worst that could happen?"

"Anything" he answered, "Anything and everything can happen."

She scoffed, "Fine you overgrown baby. We'll rest here for the night. But I expect some real game from you tomorrow."

Ivan huffed and said nothing

Stenrig was already across the road, Kayla, being cautious, made her way to the other side of the cabin. The wolves, who had scouted this area numerous times before, knew every access point of the cabin. There was a side door on Stenrig's side, he crouched himself to the right side of the door hidden from the glow of the small fire within the cabin fireplace. On Kayla's side was a window, easily accessible by climbing a small series of boxes. They were about to do what they had done countless of times before.

Inside the cabin, Ivan began taking off his armor and tending to his wounds.

"Aela" Ivan began, "What did you say this place was called?"

Aela was counting arrows when Ivan asked this question and so she was not paying attention, he asked again, this time she gave notice.

"It used to be called Pinewatch" Aela answered, "Back then it was just a bandit hideout. After the bandits moved out a family lived here, then soon the bandits came back and killed them or scared them away. Now it's nothing more than a hunter's resting stop on the road to Falkreath. Anyway, we should get some sleep. We have a long hunt ahead of us."

Ivan threw down his war axe, also made of iron and sighed, "It's a shame really" he said to no one in particular, "That Whiterun could fall to such a state. Fields just frozen over, crops dead, it's like the world is ending."

Aela rolled out her bedroll and laid down trying her best to get what sleep she could, leaving his statement unanswered. Ivan followed soon after.

Kayla, who had been watching them from the window let out a small whine, Aela stirred for a moment but quickly fell back asleep. Kayla, seeing that her efforts in getting Stenrig's attention were futile, jumped off of the boxes and headed towards Stenrig's side of the cabin. Upon seeing her, Stenrig barred his teeth and snapped his jaw; Kayla immediately ran back to her boxes and waited.

Stenrig breathed in, taking in the scent of those inside. If wolves could laugh, Stenrig would be laughing, it would be sinister and devious. His stomach would be cheering, joyous in the fact that soon it would be full. Stenrig's teeth moved back and forth, gritting themselves against each other in helpless anticipation, the lure of blood and meat was almost too much to bear. But still Stenrig waited, for the moment was not right, if they were to move now it would mean their deaths for Ivan and Aela had not yet entered deep sleep.

Kayla sat on her box, periodically shifting focus between the cabin window and the moon as it hung over Lake Ilinalta. Every bone in her body told her to howl, but howling now would risk the prospect of food and that was something that even she could not pass up. So Kayla waited, hunger slowly driving her mad, if she didn't something soon there wasn't a doubt in her mind that she would eat the first thing that moved.

Twenty minutes later Stenrig peered through the side door of Pinewatch, his nose the only thing visible from Kayla's window. The wolf sniffed the air around him and slowly passed through the threshold, careful to not let the door creak or slam as it closed behind him. Kayla, at seeing Stenrig, opened the window by pushing her paws against it. She squeezed through and landed as carefully as she could on the floor, barely missing a creaky board that would have woken Aela, who was sleeping soundly next to her.

Stenrig knew which broads were dangerous to step on, those that would make noise, and those that were safe. Like a thief in the night Stenrig moved around Ivan and stepped in front of the fireplace. Kayla slowly made her way over to him. If wolves could smile, Stenrig would be smiling. It would be a smile of sincerity, a smile that was shining with approval. Kayla, in turn, would also be smiling, for she had long been seeking Stenrig's approval, even it was in something as horrendous as breaking into a cabin and killing those inside.

The wolves leaned over their respective targets, Kayla taking Aela and Stenrig taking Ivan. Just as Kayla was about to sink her teeth into Aela's neck, Aela shot up, dagger drawn and in Kayla's side. At this Stenrig turned around, but before he could move Ivan had him pinned to the floor, an axe at his throat. Both of the wolves froze, for they had never dealt in a situation in which sleeping prey fought back with such ferocity, for they were always dormant, easy targets.

Ivan stared at Stenrig, completely confused as to why he wasn't retaliating.

"What is it doing?" Ivan asked turning towards Aela, who was holding Kayla down, the wolf slowly bleeding on the floor.

"I don't know" Aela answered, "This isn't normal wolf behavior"

Aela could hear Kayla wheezing in pain and breathing heavily. Aela slowly let off and stepped back.

Stenrig kept his eyes locked on Kayla; he sniffed the air, smelt the blood. Ivan looked into the wolf's eyes, they were begging, pleading to be set free. Ivan looked at Stenrig for a long time, the wolf periodically switching his focus between Kayla and Ivan, his eyes displaying for the first time an emotion that he did not know existed until this exact moment-fear.

"Should we kill them?" Ivan asked, "Be good for pelts and not to mention food."

Aela nodded in agreement, "Yes" she replied, "But two wolves aren't going to help us feed Whiterun Brother, remember that."

Ivan sighed, knowing that deep down Aela was right. At the very least he figured it would be good food for the days ahead. Stenrig struggled under the weight as Ivan began to apply more pressure to his throat.

"What are you doing?" Aela said scolding him, "Make it quick! It's an animal of Skyrim and as such deserves a quick death."

Kayla slowly stood up, she was extremely weak, but she still had one more card to play. Stenrig saw this and barked in an attempt to stop her. This did nothing. Aela readied her bow, an arrow was notched. She let it fly just as Kayla made for Aela's throat. The wolf fell down on the cabin floor, dead before she hit the ground.

Stenrig struggled even more, if only to at least attempt to break free. He snapped his teeth and dug his claws into Ivan's skin with as much force as he could but it was all in vain. Ivan brought his dagger to Stenrig's neck and slit it.

Standing up Ivan and Aela looked at the bodies of the two wolves, everything they had was telling to go back to sleep but hunter's instinct took over and so they began the process of skinning Stenrig and Kayla for their meat and pelts, when this was done they threw their carcasses in the woods beyond.


End file.
